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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: clip · date · plane · mate · spring · toast · present · calf

  1. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. Have you settled on a ________________?
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. toast — a drink to someone
  2. mate — a friend
  3. spring — a coil
  4. clip — a video
  5. mate — to breed
  6. clip — for paper
  7. spring — the season
  8. mate — a partner
  9. present — there
  10. toast — bread
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. spring — of water
  14. present — the time now
  15. toast — the most admired
  16. present — a gift
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. clip — to cut
  23. plane — a tool
  24. date — the fruit

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com